C. L. Innes Aerated Water Manufacturer

[Mark Dalrymple]

Hi all.

After working frantically on Fault Lines over the last little while, I have decided to move over to a diorama I started some time ago for my Tellynott home layout. My intention is to enter the diorama in the structure section of the NZ model railroading convention next Easter. I wanted something with some New Zealand interest, something that used a variety of materials, was based on a NZ prototype, and would fit on my layout - both physically and mood wise. It also needed to be within certain physical parameters in order to be able to be carry on luggage in case I fly to the convention. A BIG ask! However, when searching random sections of the library's non fiction section, as I am inclined to do from time to time, I stumbled across a book entitled 'Aerated water'. Within it was a large section on the 'C. L. Innes brewers, bottlers and aerated water manufacturers' factory in Hamilton, including several photographs from different angles.  It was one of those times when you see a collection of pictures from different angles and go Wow!  I have to build that!  Interestingly, some months later, I found an aerial view of Hamilton and discovered a wonderful massed hodge podge of roof lines and types meeting at different angles and heights.  I scanned the picture, enlarged the area, located it on a street map using surrounding features to help position it, went into Google maps street view, and discovered it was the very same C. L. Innes Aerated water Manufactures!  The aerial view was so cool that I may well end up building this model twice!

I have 'flipped' the order of the structures horizontally to fit the site on my layout and have rotated the large corrugated iron structure at the back by 90 degrees. The two brick structures at right (one will be plastered) will be half relief to fit between the road and the backdrop (the road curves past parallel to the backdrop as it passes the last building at the right, whereas at the left end it is 8" or so away from the backdrop). The road is on a curve and the buildings will be angled slightly to fit this. I have also added one story to two of the structures.  The structure(s) must be 'pertaining to railways' in order to be eligible for the Easter competition so I will add a lower section at the back of the weatherboard structure at the left end and add a loading platform on an angle with a rail siding (this I may remove at a later date as the track passing at this point is actually a main line). Apart from these slight changes, the sketch is actually very close to the original. Its nice to be excited about a new project!

Picture 1 - my sketch of the diorama.

Picture 2 - shows the plastic frame work that the buildings will sit on. The levels were a bit tricky as I had to make clearance for the curved track that runs underneath.   The idea is that when it is finished, the whole industry (sitting on the plastic framework) will just lift off the diorama and onto my layout.

Picture 3 - I started the far end (modern addition added in 1930) with a DPM M T Arms hotel kit. I cut and spliced and filed out all the window openings to fit Tichy Train 6/6 lite windows to help achieve the 'factory' feel.

Picture 4 - shows the main bashing completed with one window in place and a nice new art deco front door in place. (The city of Napier in New Zealand was rebuilt after the large Hawke's bay earthquake in 1931, and almost all of the buildings are built in the art deco style - so I think this door should fit just fine for my 1930's time frame.)

Picture 5 - For the second masonry building I attacked a 'Gruesome casket' kit. This pic shows the windows in place (wooden framed as in the prototype) and a large sliding door. I made up a fancy top piece (and will do the same for the first structure). The walls will be painted to resemble cut stone, and I have a nice pic of a structure in Temuka (an hour and a half south of where I live) as a guide.

Picture 6 - Colouring will be based around the colour scheme used on the aerated water book front cover. This is the only colour used in the book, and I'm guessing some research was put in to establish the original colour scheme used by C. L. Innes & co. Ltd. Regardless, I think I can make it work, and its one less thing to decide.

More soon, cheers, Mark.

[ACL1504]

Mark,

This will be fun to watch. Off to a great start and I'm really looking forward to the finished project.

Tom

[Mark Dalrymple]

Part 2.

I mocked up all the wooden structures and the tin shed at back in cardboard, chose windows and doors for the two wooden structures and marked them in place. I turned the two masonry false front buildings into half relief structures, joined them together, added parapet walls, and mocked up a pitched roof for the left one. I made up a chimney for the complex from a Walthers red wing mill kit. I decided to leave a gap between the two masonry structures and the gabled weatherboard structure, and there will be steps leading up the a 2nd story door, bins, junk and the like.

Picture 1 - A view looking down the street from the right.

Picture 2 - A birds eye view from the left.

Picture 3 - This pic shows the parapet walls and the pitched roof.

Picture 4 - The angled roofs which will sit against the backdrop. The stack just fits in.

More uploading tomorrow night.

Cheers, Mark.

[Mark Dalrymple]

Wow Tom!  You're up early!  I thought everyone in the USA would be asleep while I got this up - but I see you have snuck a post in!  Thanks for the comment - Its nice to be changing things up a bit!  Actually, after the show, I promised myself a little break from modelling - but I don't think I can do it!  This is me 'not modelling'!!!  Right - I'm off to bed now.  Enjoy today - its nearly tomorrow here!

Cheers, Mark.

[GPdemayo]

That is one interesting looking scene Mark. I look forward to following along. 

[Janbouli]

I like where this is heading.

[Mark Dalrymple]

Thanks Gregory and Janbouli.

No uploading last night - I was a little stuffed after a hard day tying steel in the sun.  27C (81F) forecast for today which is pretty hot for this time of the year.  Summer is on its way!  I did gather my boxes of bits for the project and make a space on the table for the diorama - but I must clean up the garage before I start!  Hopefully a bit more updating tonight.

Cheers, Mark.

[BandOGuy]

Wow Tom!  You're up early!  I thought everyone in the USA would be asleep while I got this up - but I see you have snuck a post in!  Thanks for the comment - Its nice to be changing things up a bit!  Actually, after the show, I promised myself a little break from modelling - but I don't think I can do it!  This is me 'not modelling'!!!  Right - I'm off to bed now.  Enjoy today - its nearly tomorrow here!

Cheers, Mark.

Is this thought related to "today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday'? 

[Mark Dalrymple]

Hi guys.

BandOGuy - SouthPark did an episode of 'the day after the day after tomorrow'!

Well the next step was to get the corrugated iron shed ready and work on the first of the weatherboard structures. Here's some pictures.

Photo 1 - Here's the complex from the front. (I had to alter the photo for clarity and so the colours aren't the same as the real thing).

Photo 2 - One from the left.

Windows and roofs are just sitting in position in the shiplap structure. Walls are Southern green dry brushed with concrete, and trim is faithful old reefer white, with a medium wash of A/I immediately blotted off.

I cut out the window and door openings to the front wall of the other weatherboard structure. One of the trickier (and more interesting) ones I have done.

Photo 3 - The wall without windows and doors.

Photo 4 - Windows and doors added. 6 by 6's will attach to the corners.

Photo 5 - A photo of the original building, just to prove I'm not making it up! Note: I flipped my model horizontally to better suit my site.

More soon, cheers, Mark.

[Mark Dalrymple]

Hi again.

Next was cladding the 'tin shed'. All the corrugated iron is now on. I bent it around the corners which worked quite well. Just the ridge capping left to do. I make this from tin foil, double sided tape and fine plastic rod. I don't think I will put barge roll up from the fly rafters, although it might be fun to give it a try! We will see.

Photo 1 - Here is a picture showing the tin shed in position. The back part of the roof is cut at an angle to fit up against the backdrop. The iron is Campbell's. I cut it to length to fit the size of the roof and walls onto which it is to be installed if necessary, then use a blunt fine pointed compass to impress nail holes at 3' centres along the strip of iron, every second undulation - one row just up from the bottom, one a scale three foot up from here, and another if required. This process makes me go cross-eyed!!! I always do it when I have company - otherwise I start talking to myself! I leave off the top row as the lap of the iron above (or the ridge capping) will hide these. I then cut the iron into 3' wide strips. One score with a sharp knife, and then wiggle backwards and forwards a couple of times to snap. I mark the walls where the top of each row of iron is to be, and then cover in double sided tape. I remove the tape covering only as needed, always working from the bottom up to get the lap the right way around. The iron is put on with the nail hole indentations facing out to resemble lead headed nails. If you look at corrugated iron roofs in the prototype, unlike with weatherboard, the lead headed nails are always visible from some distance. I find it funny the way most modellers go to the trouble of putting nail holes in weatherboard siding when they usually aren't seen in the prototype, and yet don't bother with corrugated iron! I do both. I like rustic, but always struggle to make things too rustic! The iron is nailed to Dwangs (noggins) at specific spacings after all, and so it is important to me to try to keep the lead headed nails in some form of wiggly wobbly line.

Photo 2 - So here is the four structures which are presently in 3-D form (but still with a fair amount of finishing to do)

Photo 3- And here is the arrangement showing a card mock-up of the last building on the left

I made a travel box to take this model to the convention.  When digging out all the relative information I found I had kept fairly good notes - like the colours used, both for the wall colours and dry brushing. I then went about working on the walls of the last structure to the left.

Photo 4 - The walls for the 2-D structure. The unseen walls are made of stiff card.

Photo 5 - A close up of the front wall with the doors and windows put in place (they still need dry brushing).

Photo 6 - And some signage (done previously) for the two masonry structures.

More soon, cheers, Mark.

[S&S RR]

It's looking good so far - I will be following the thread.

[Mark Dalrymple]

Hi guys.

Thanks, John.  I hope I can keep the same sort of momentum that you seem to always have!

Well - a few developments.  I did manage to have a small break - which was nice.  Not so much from modelling, but from modelling with any real deadline.  I tinkered away on a severe kit-bash of Campbell's Kings Cannery - just cutting and fitting corrugated iron.

News on the Innes diorama is that the Easter convention is again to be held in Wellington (instead of Auckland).  This means half the travelling distance - and I think I might drive up.  Its about 5 hours driving and then 3 hours with the car on the ferry.  We were looking at hiring a car in Wellington, but taking mine will work out slightly cheaper and it will mean I am not confined so much on the size of the diorama.  In truth I have been struggling a little with the confines - wanting to stretch things a little one way or the other for various reasons.  And, of course, when you start considering stretching things a little - the little gets more and more (I'm sure there's a song in there somewhere!).

So... here are a couple of plans of two different scenarios.

Picture (plan) 1 - the simple design where I have stretched the length of the diorama very slightly to the left to allow room for half of a background structure bashed from a Heljan brewery.  The only real issue with this is the half of the kit-bash having to be joined to the other half at a later date.  It does mean that this diorama can be put in a box that I could travel with on the train and ferry.  I find the shape somewhat sharp and angular.

Picture (plan) 2 - (roads/parking are shaded and the river is shown with diagonal lines.  Vertical heights are shown on the road in inches.) - this one has been stretched significantly - but with that stretch comes more drama!  Firstly the shape is very balanced and aesthetically pleasing to the eye.  The drop down below ground level to the river adds another dimension.  It gives the viewer several 'snapshots' - under the road bridge along the railway lines, under the road bridge along the river, under the factory walkover up the road.  It also gives me the opportunity to finish off two more well underway models and - heaven forbid - start another one!  (although it is a pretty cool one - and one I have been itching to start).  There is no issue with building half a Heljan kit-bash as I will build all of it.  The problems are the later splicing of the roads and the river.

Picture 3 - shows the Heljan kit-bash underway.

Photo 4 - shows the structure(s) behind the small lane - back left.

Photo 5 - shows the track side structure in front of the small lane.

Photo 6 - shows the narrowness of the structure(s) behind the lane.

What do you all think?  I feel like I've talked myself into it(!) although I'd better talk to my travelling companion first.  I would love to hear your thoughts.

More soon, cheers, Mark.

[ACL1504]

Mark,

Wonderful job on the structures. Each one is a masterpiece.

Tom

[S&S RR]

I like your plan - splicing rivers and roads is much easier than structures.  I think it will look great.  I really like elevation changes.

[Janbouli]

looking great so far , enjoy following this build